Flux
by Kimmzie
Summary: Rose Tyler is using the dimension cannon to get to the 10th Doctor. She gets to the right reality and finds that time is in flux and the Doctor is dead. The 8th Doctor is trying to escape the Time War. He finds himself in Pete's World and there is a despondent Rose at his feet. With reality cracking he offers to help restore his timeline. Will they find Donna?
1. Chapter 1

Flux

By Kimmzie

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who.

Author's Note: I fixed some grammar issues! Read, Review and Enjoy. The Eighth Doctor was my first Doctor!

Her heart was a piece of lead. The staccato beat thundered in her chest, and tried to crack her ribs. Rose Tyler leaned against a wall and felt her body sliding down the wet, hard bricks. She noted that with every dimension jump she seemed to end up in an alley. At least she was alone.

She had been too late…. He was gone. The piece of lead drifted down into her stomach. Her hot tears plastered her gold hair to her cheeks. She should've worn water proof mascara.

Only his white trainers had been visible from under the red tarp. She felt anguish. Everything was too heavy to support as she sat on the pavement. He was gone and the stars were going out. She closed her eyes and rubbed the tears and mascara off her cheeks.

"Excuse me, miss… Pardon me, but are you alright?" a deep voices said. It broke Rose's contemplation. She lifted her hazel eyes a little and saw scuffed knee high boot.

"Sorry mate, I'm fine. Just fine. Just need a mo," she said. Rose wiped off her trousers and made an attempt to get up. Strong arms steadied her shoulders and helped lift her to her feet. She looked up and saw blue eyes.

"Are you sure you are alright? People don't tend to sit in alleys. Well, maybe in this place," he said in a soft and steady voice.

"W'What do'you mean this place?" Rose said as her tongue tripped over the words. This man was odd. She looked him over appraisingly, he was older than her and had short, curly brown hair. He looked like he walked out of a Jane Austen remake, cravat and all.

"I'm not a big zeppelin person." He gestured up towards the ships. "There was this big fiasco with an airship and a princess a few months ago. But I am not used to these type of airships being in London," he trailed off.

"So, who are you then?" Rose questioned trying to gain her composure.

"Oh, me? Just a traveler. I'm the Doctor. And you are?" he replied. His blue eyes shone with a familiar brilliance.

"Rose, Rose Tyler. Doctor?" She didn't know what to do. "Doctor," she repeated.

"Have we met before? Sometimes I meet people and don't know them yet. Hazards of my kind of travel. But you, Rose Tyler are most interesting." He looked down at her. "Your timeline is twisted within itself. You don't belong here." His blue eyes shone darkly at her. "This is wrong."

"Doctor," she breathed. Her heart felt lighter. She couldn't help it, her arms were around him and she tried to squeeze so that he would never leave her again.

"Ah! So Rose Tyler, we have met." He gently pulled away. "And your smile can reach your eyes."

"Yeah," she replied with a smile that let her tongue peak through her teeth. "Will time be damaged with you being here? I haven't met you yet."

"I can make myself forget these events if necessary, "the Doctor answered. His fingers pinched the edge of his nose as he looked at her. "But how are you in the wrong reality? Time in this Universe is bending around you. It's compensating. But, I can't tell you how long that will last."

"I got trapped. But it's more than that. Take a harder look. Time moves faster in this dimension. But it's happening everywhere, the stars are going out. All of reality is fracturing," Rose said quickly.

"Yes, it seems there is quite a bit going on." He winced as he opened his time senses further. The time streams were splintering and breaking off. The Time Lord couldn't stand it. He dulled his sense and tried to gulp away the sick sensation that was at the back of his throat. "It doesn't seem to be just the Time War anymore. But let's not waste the night in an alley. Where to?" the Doctor said pleasantly as he tried to recover.

"I'll make my report in the morning. To my flat?" Rose smiled, and held out her hand out of habit. The strange Doctor appraised it. He smoothly entangled his fingers with hers. For a second, the rotation of the Earth and Stars slowed.

"Usually I make people buy me a drink first." He swung their hands in a slow rhythm. "The TARDIS is slightly damaged, but I could use my instruments to look and see why the timelines are fracturing," he continued. Rose squeezed his hand as he saw worry lines appear in his forehead.

"Oh right, Brilliant! Where is she?" Rose looked up to him and smiled. His worry lines smoothed away.

"Ah yes, Right down this way." He twirled her around a corner. But he could still see that her hazel eyes were glassy.

He smiled as he saw her eyes light up as she gazed upon the blue box he called home. She took out a key from around her neck and dangled it back and forth on its silver chain. "May I?" She grinned.

"You can try," he said with an expectant eyebrow.

"Well, here goes nothing.'" She took the key and the door opened with a smooth turn. "It worked!" She jumped a few times in glee shaking her hands.

The Doctor crossed his arms in amusement. Who was this golden girl? This Rose Tyler, who had such sad eyes.

"Well, a door once opened may be entered. Ladies first," he said. He couldn't help but smile at the distinctive ooo that came from inside. He did have taste.

"There's so much wood, and arches. Very posh," she said stroking the console. She heard the TARDIS hum in approval.

"Hello girl," she said with a grin. The lights of the TARDIS flickered. "So Doctor, the dimension cannon needs time to recharge. I'll give my data and report tomorrow. That means I am all yours til 'then." He could see her smile did not reach her eyes.

"Well then Rose Tyler, care for a cup of tea?" the Time Lord asked. She nodded and started to let her hair down. Her bangs covered her eyes. She shrugged out of the purple leather coat and left it on one his favorite reading chairs. "The temperature is a little off… Damage," the Doctor said noncommittally. "There may be shifts in the atmospheric controls, and translation may get dodgy, while the TARDIS is focused on other things. Crossing over into this dimension drained several power conduits and stabilizers." He pulled a hand through his hair as he looked over the main console. "I may be here for a spell." He looked over to Rose who was now perched on the arm of the reading chair. He smiled as he shrugged off his raggedy overcoat and undid his cravat. It was quite hot. His body was even close to sweating.

"At least you got company."

"Yes, I do. It's been a while," he trailed off. "Good to know I have you to look forward to." He handed her a cup of tea that had appeared out of the ether. The cup was hot pink.

"You've been alone?" She reached out to grab his bare forearm with her spare hand. His nerves sent electric shocks through his body at the contact.

He withdrew a little, and the Tyler girl frowned.

"It's been a long couple of decades," he said with a shrug.

She nodded. "I've been jumping between dimensions for a few months. At first, the times were random." She lowered her eyes. "I saw scenes of the Time War in other Universes. It was numbing, horrifying." The Doctor turned his back.

"I will take no part in it," he said sternly.

Rose shook her head. "Well, we've got more than the Time War to deal with," she said in a small voice. Her voice was breaking. As the Doctor turned around the girl was in a ball silently sobbing. Her hands clawed at her hair as she hid her face from him. He put the forgotten tea on the side table and went to kneel by her.

"Well that was some rubbish tea; supposed to make everything better," he murmured as his hand hesitantly found her back. Rose stiffened to his touch. "Yes, that was a bad quip," he apologized. "Why did I find you crying in an alley, Rose Tyler? I don't think it is because reality is fracturing."

"Y'you…" she whispered. He could tell that she was holding back sobs. He dare not let out a breath as his respiratory bypass kicked in.

"Me?" His hand was bold enough to disentangle her hand so he could look in her teary, hazel eyes. Her heart was racing. "What do you mean?" he asked. The Time Lord ignored the insistent humming of the TARDIS in the back of his mind. "Rose, what do you mean? How can I be more important than reality fracturing?"

"Because." She turned her head. "You're you. You're Brilliant. You're the Doctor. My Doctor," she stuttered. Her hands clasps both sides of his face. He was frozen and his hearts stopped pumping. "And now you're gone." She let go of his face and started to grab her hair. She rocked slowly back and forth. "I found you! Then you were gone!" she cried. She was seething as she held out what looked to be a damp sonic screw driver. He could sense her pain; the rage, anguish, and emptiness emanating off her slight form.

"Rose, I don't know what happened. But it can be fixed. Time is in flux. Especially around you. May I add the fabric of reality is in flux. We can fix this. I am the Doctor. The Doctor is right here." He adjusted himself so he could wrap his arms around the girl.

"You drowned…. I was too late. It's so wrong," she continued. She grabbed him tighter.

"No time to regenerate I see," he said with a sigh. She shook her head against his chest.

"There was supposed to be a woman there to help you. To stop you."

"You?" It was a simple question. She kept back a chocked sob. "Sorry," he whispered his fingers finding their way into her hair.

"No, we got separated. I got trapped here and I'm trying to find," she cutoff the sentence. Her hands took his out of her hair and entwined them within her own. "I'm trying to find you." She smiled a bit.

"You found the right man, just a tad early," he said as his thumb stroked the back of her hand. "It's not a fixed point in time." His adventurous thumb found her cheek. She smiled and it reached her eyes.

"Hello." She continued to smile.

"Hello," the Doctor replied calmly. "Now, who is this woman that stops me?"

"Her name is Donna Noble. She's special. But her timeline has changed somehow. You weren't supposed to die." His eyes darkened at that statement.

He hid a sigh. "Well, we shall fix this," he murmured. Rose's breathing was steadying and her heart was slowing down. "First, I believe you need some rest. Humans do tend to sleep a third of their life away." He slowly started to break away from the comfortable weight on his chest. He would never look at that chair the same again. "Let's see if the TARDIS has the energy to give you a room." He let his arms sweep over the control room. "Take your jacket, it's about to get frigid." He scooped up his rumpled coat.

Rose followed the Doctor down the corridors and felt intense déjà vu. Same man, old face. Well, the face was new to her. Rose heard a hum and a light flickered near a door. "Doctor, I think it's this one." She went over to the heavy wooden door. It opened on its own accord.

"It's pink!" Rose said in a high pitched voice. "Kinda looks like my old room," she continued.

"The TARDIS stores rooms in its data banks. She must like you. Lots of ruffles," the Doctor commented as he leaned against the door. "I'm going to go into the time vortex so I can calibrate some tools to figure out this situation. Sleep as much as you need. We'll get you to your report on time. Which you still have to explain to me." Rose perked up from the bed and the Doctor shook his head. "Get comfortable, I'll be back in a moment." He turned and left the room hands clasped at the small of his back.

Rose jumped on the fluffy bed for a few minutes and then went to check out the wardrobe. She grabbed a fuzzy pair of pink pajamas and wrapped a dark robe around herself. It was getting cold. She fought back a shiver and could feel the hairs on her arms standing up.

This Tyler was focusing on the moment. The despair of losing the Doctor and the confusion of finding an earlier version of him in the same day was too much. Far too much.

"Well, it definitely is getting colder. I can fix the atmospheric controls in a few hours. I'm trying to tune the Eye of Harmony to your timeline and mine." the Doctor said as he entered the room. "I may need help from your instruments to find this Donna Noble, woman."

"You just want m' company," Rose said jumping on the bed.

The Doctor shrugged his shoulders and slowly approached her. He had a heavier coat on that was a greenish velvet. "Well, Rose Tyler. You do seem apprised of the situation." Rose nodded and looked down to the Doctor's hands.

"What's all the pink?"

"Oh yes, here you are. Something to keep warm. It's going to get colder soon. A hobby. Sometimes there is too much time."

"Sure, yeah right. The superior Time Lord knits." She examined the scarf and hat.

"A man needs his hobbies over the centuries," the Doctor said with a shrug. Rose bundled herself up in the pink wool. "There! It will help you from getting cold." He straightened the hat on the girl's head. "Good night." He didn't even think when he kissed her forehead.

Rose was too exhausted and numb to overthink the gesture. She laid back and closed her heavy eyes as the lights dimmed. "Thanks," she whispered.

The Doctor leaned against the outside of Rose's door. Who was this woman? He was never this affectionate towards his former companions. Well, he had kissed a woman over a pair of shoes that fit. But still. He listened for her breathing to straighten out. She would have to be strong enough to look into the eye. This Donna Noble woman would be found.

He stunted his time senses as he felt the time lines flux, reality fracture, and the screams of the Time War. His mind was weary. This pink and yellow girl had brought him here and he would help her. He was her Doctor.


	2. Chapter 2

Flux

By Kimmzie

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who. This is for fun.

Author's Note: Grammatical errors have been addressed. Here is chapter 2. Reviews and such are always welcome. Enjoy!

Sometime later, a cold draft snuck into Rose's room and nipped at her nose. The girl hid a shiver. She wrapped the wooly scarf around her face and pulled the covers over her head. The bed was fluffy and let her body sink into it. Her hazy mind knew that it would wake soon. The reality of the Multi-verse would come crashing over her; not yet.

The TARDIS did a musical hum in her mind. Her thoughts slowed. She was safe.

Meanwhile in the bowels of his ship, the Doctor was doing what he did best. He tinkered; and he was fantastic at it. Nevertheless ever since the Time War had started, the Time Lord hadn't touched the Eye of Harmony. It had been decades. He was too busy running. The singularity would show too much. If the Daleks could get a hold of it the cost would be catastrophic. But here he was actively searching out timelines again and about to use the Eye.

The Doctor let out a loud sigh mixed with a laugh of exasperation. He dropped the wires to the ground and shook his head. He had been dragged into a parallel world. Apparently, he was dead. Additionally, this Rose Tyler girl shows up at his feet. Literally, at the toes of his well-worn boots. The Doctor tried to push her from his mind with an exhale of frosty breath. It was getting cold. His mind turned to an image of Rose wrapped up in the pink scarf. Later! He would think of her later. He looked at her crude watch- type device that had been forgotten on his reading chair. With a push of a few buttons it recorded dimensional coordinates, time lines, possible paradoxes, and various other readings. Primitive but effective. Ooo it measured height above sea level. It had been hooked up to the TARDIS' database for a few hours.

The combined data confirmed it. Rose was right, the walls were fracturing and his time line just stopped. It was wrong. He warily opened himself to the time lines and they were more in flux. It was so wrong. Time was mutating around his own time. He was usually hesitant to look into his future. But he never was really one for rules. He looked over the screen to see Rose's data. She had gone through so many worlds, and different realities. All to find him? He dare not look over her timeline again. He shook his head and leaned against the dark wall. It had been a few long decades.

"Hello there," a chipper voice said successfully breaking his concentration. "Good to see all your bodies know how to brood."

"I do not brood," the Doctor replied crossing his arms. "I have a few things set up. First if you're feeling better, I need some questions answered. We'll try a different flavor of tea." The Time Lord smiled and started to walk towards the console room.

"You know it took me like twenty minutes to find this place," she huffed. The Doctor tilted his head and gave her a quizzical look. And then, he stole her hat.

"It will be good exercise." He smiled. "We also have to go find a star."

"I prefer running," she chuckled to herself. The Doctor returned her hat and started to jog ahead. "Glad I wore my trainers," Rose replied as she tried to keep up.

When they got to the console room both travelers were laughing like idiots. "I guess there will continue to be running in my future." The Doctor presented the magically appearing pink cup to her. "It should be a different flavor and warm." He pushed the reading chair in front of her. Rose silently sipped from the cup and sat. The Time Lord became silent and leaned a few feet away from her on the console.

"Yeah, don't we have a star to find?" Rose asked trying to break up the silence.

"In time," he replied. "Who are you Rose Tyler?"

"I don't know what you mean. I'm Rose Tyler and you're The Doctor." She put the mug down.

"Rose, I am very tired. I can see that you have traveled a far way. Probably seen many things. I just don't understand what you are to me. Because of the Time War my senses are limited."

"What," the girl replied as she was left speechless.

"People don't mourn Time Lords anymore. They run. They run very fast. How can the Universe forgive the war? Why do you mourn me?" She felt as if his eyes were burning holes through her. He was rarely this open.

"Because Doctor, you're brilliant. You make everything better. You made me better. I felt the world spinning beneath my feet because of you. I'm defending the Earth because of you," Rose cut her words short as the man approached her.

"I run. I've been running my whole life," he said shortly. "It's going to catch up with me."

"How long have you been on your own?" the girl whispered. She was silent as he shook his head. "I've seen the darkness of it all. Not as long as you. But we just keep going. We have to stop the stars from going out." He just shook his head.

"Ever onwards," the man sighed.

"Come'ere," the girl said. She pointed at her temples. "I know your senses are limited. But, can you see in here?" He nodded. Wordlessly he removed the hat from her head and brought shaky hands to her temples.

The Doctor let down his shields and was bathed in a golden light. He was in the TARDIS but the desktop had changed. It was coral, blue and very grungy. Rose was looking up at him from a jump seat, her feet dangling playfully. "I got some telepathic training from you when a psychopathic trampoline possessed me. Anyway, welcome to my mind," she said with a smile. Her tongue was poking out of the edge of her mouth. "Well as you said, 'a manifestation of my thoughts or simply my mind's lobby.' You kinda went off on a tangent after that," she said with a shrug.

"I tend to do that," he said as he joined her on the jump seat. "You're dressed in black." He fingered the cloth of her hoodie.

"I can get a tad dramatic," she said quietly. The lobby faded and they were on a wet street in London. There was a sonic screw driver at the foot of a stretcher. Rose started to turn away and he grabbed her hand.

"Sorry, I can be insensitive sometimes. You can stop if you want," the Doctor said with a squeeze of her hand.

"No, it kinda just leaked through. C'mon then." She pulled him down the street away from the emergency lights. The street morphed into a cinema with posh red seats and a sticky floor. "Take a seat," Rose said as she ushered him into a middle row.

The screen was alit and he saw a younger Rose folding t-shirts. "I was just a shop girl before I met you. I was just a girl that hadn't finished her A-levels, and folded clothing. I thought I wanted just an ordinary life." she reached out her fingers. "Then you grabbed my hand and said, 'Run.'" Her fingers entwined with his. "I've been running with you ever since." She leaned back in her seat and gazed upon the screen with a slight smile.

The screen flickered. There were flashes of a man grinning at them ear to ear on many occasions. Then the man was covered in gold light and declared, "Everybody lives Rose! Just this once, everybody lives." People were saying his name in awe, crowds of people.

"You're the Doctor, you help people." Then the screen slowed down and there were lingering images of two different faces gazing at Rose with an emotion he thought was no longer possible. He felt a warmth radiating off of her. An acceptance of who he was or would be. "I promised you forever. And you're gonna get it," she said softly. There was the image of a cold white wall and then a flash of a beach. "Can't give it all away." She wiggled her free hand.

"Yes, the world is burning, but we keep fighting. You always keep going. You're my Doctor," she said bringing her lips gently to his hand. He couldn't ignore the flash of gold on the screen as she said the last sentence.

"Quite right," he murmured. It was the only response he could come up with.

"It's bad. But, it will be fantastic," the girl trailed off and the theater lights dimmed. Suddenly, they were on the wet streets of London again. In front of them stood a man, the Doctor recognized him from the screen. He wore a brown pinstriped suit and smiled at Rose, his hair was sticking up everywhere.

"Absolutely fantastic." She looked from the man in the suit to the Doctor. The Time Lord noticed that her hoodie was now pink.

"Well then, let's go find a star." He smiled down at Rose and broke the connection.

Rose was swirling the remnants of tea in her mug when the Doctor called her over to the console. "There," he said. His finger pointed to the screen. "This part of this universe is old. Here is a binary star that lost its partner and is about to go supernova," he said with a smile.

"Are you going to use it to contact someone? That's how you said goodbye."

"Well, you are. You're going to look across my timeline and find a version of your Doctor. So he can pull us through the crack to the right world. Then we will try and find this Donna woman."

"We?" Rose looked over towards the Time Lord.

"Rose Tyler even if the walls are cracking, I cannot allow you to keep making the holes bigger with this dimensional canon. The technology in the TARDIS is far superior. Your journey would go much more swiftly. So this last trip will be one way," he said with a pause as if waiting for her to say something. "Are you alright with that?"

"So I have to say goodbye," she said dully. He nodded. "I made my choice a long time ago." She leaned in closer to him. He could feel her hot breath just below his collar. The Doctor stood ridged and tried to ignore the warmth

"Yes. Well," he was cut off as the human girl's lips covered the next part of the sentence. Instinctively he opened his lips to her inquisitive tongue. His synapses fired lightning as they cautiously explored each other. His mind flashed gold as her arms wrapped around him. Apparently she chose him.

Rose pulled away with a blush. "Um, sorry I wasn't really thinking."

"We haven't done that sort of thing before?" he asked his lips still tingling.

"No, not really. We didn't get that far. We don't really talk about it and…" The Doctor held up his hand to stop her.

"You don't need to explain. You've made your choice. Let's go and get your Doctor back."


	3. Chapter 3

Flux

By Kimmzie

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I had this one on the back burner. Read, review and enjoy! Edited for grammar.

The pair made their way in silence to the bowels of the TARDIS. "So Rose Tyler, are you ready?" The Doctor adjusted his cravat. "The Eye of Harmony is complicated," he said with a frown. "Just maintain focus and you will be fine. The Time Lords don't even know I figured out how to do this." He pushed some golden locks from her face. She was biting her lower lip. No tongue and cheek today.

"Find where our timelines separate, yeah?" she asked shakily. He nodded.

"I've inputted the data you have collected on Donna Noble so you should be able to see where her timeline went astray."

"When I find it what do I do?" she asked with a small shrug and slowed her step a little.

"Call out for me and I will pin point it. If we know how time is mutating we can fix that point in time. The original timeline won't stay prominently established for long…" He gave her arm a gentle tug. "It's now or never, Rose."

"Yeah." She started to fall in with his brisk pace. The timelines were changing and cracking faster than the Doctor had anticipated. Donna Noble must be one important woman. The most important woman in his original Universe.

Rose settled into a comfortable position so she could look into the Eye. The Doctor fell back and went to his database. She gave him two thumbs up and went about opening the eye. The process was simple. What happens after the singularity opened was the problem. The Doctor braced himself for the maelstrom of temporal energy. He shuddered as that odd golden energy barraged his shields.

Rose Tyler was everywhere and nowhere. Images flashed faster than she could comprehend. Everything was happening at once. There were more thoughts, people, and places than she could grasp. She was nothing. She was everything. The stars, moon, night and day were hers to control. Something was burning. Her skin was blistering and cracking under the heat.

"Concentrate," said a faint scream.

The blisters on her hands broke as she clenched her hands into fists. She concentrated on somewhere safe. Home. The blurs of timelines faded away and a golden light revealed her TARDIS. She sat herself on the jump seat and looked at the screen. "Now what?" she questioned out loud.

"Well, you most certainly should start looking for this Donna Noble," a familiar voice said from behind her. She didn't know what to do as a lanky figure in brainy specks leaned over her to look at the screen.

"What? It's you Doctor. But, you're gone. Is it you? How can it be you?" She reached out her hand to the pinstriped suit and it was solid.

"So yeah. Well, quite right," he stammered.

"Doctor!" Rose looked him in the eyes. There were more smile lines at the corners of his eyes. The dark orbs seemed wearier.

"Sorry. Sorry, your mind is trying to process what I am so I can tell you. Yes, there! Remember in the twentieth century, or so when Microsoft had that annoying paperclip in the word processing program? Think of it like the TARDIS back drop is your word document and I am your guide. The paperclip."

"So you're a piece of software?" she sighed as he nodded his head in acquiescence. "Ok."

"Yup," he replied with an extra pop to the p. "But forget all that. We need to sort through the timelines. Look at the screen. That gold stream is yours, see how it divides into so many possibilities that is from all your travels. The blueishy one is mine, or his; however, you want to put it. You can move through them just by thought. Think of it like you're fast forwarding a film in the media room. Now, think of the last time you saw me."

"I…"she stammered.

"The Eye can't stay open for long so you have to," the paperclip Doctor urged her on.

She dug deep and started to picture the sand. It had been so cold under her feet that it clumped in an odd fashion as she walked to where the Doctor called her. She had a red hiking pack in the back of the jeep just in case. The water had reflected the sun on his hologram and he had looked dim and opaque, even with some sonic. He couldn't… He couldn't save her from Pete's world. She was trapped on the slow path, alone. Her future would be mortgages and houses that had carpets without him.

He was about to say it. Utter the words of their unspoken bond. They were what they were. And yet, words had power. They shaped reality. The right or wrong word could change a whole causal nexus. Her heart was thundering in her chest and she could hear the blood rushing through her veins. Then he was gone. The two lines on the screen diverged.

"There." She pointed to the screen. The false Time Lord gave her a joyful laugh.

"Now you have to follow the blueishy line. Keep a look out for Donna." The Paperclip Doctor spread out his hands and a purple line appeared. Rose didn't quite understand why but she felt as if the line was yelling at her. "Yeah she does that."

He was alone. Was there a tear going down his cheek? She could kind of feel that yelling at the back of her neck. She shivered. There! In a wedding dress was Donna. She had seen her a few times before. All attitude and fiery, red hair. How'd she get into the TARDIS? The Doctor went from devastated to confused. She loved how his freckles danced when he scrunched up his nose.

Oh, he tried so hard to get her to her wedding. Rose wasn't certain if the events were around her or just on the screen. Huon energy had brought Donna to the TARDIS. But how'd it get there? She smiled as they ended up at H.C Clemens, and they got to ride segways. Now she had to put that on her list. The events continued to flash before her eyes. It had been her fiancé that had poisoned her. She didn't want to go into the motives behind that kind of relationship or villainy. H.C Clemens was the key.

"You get that?" Rose asked her Paperclip.

"Right almost there now. What changed? Why didn't she get the job?" his voice echoed faintly.

Rose focused on the purple time line. The images raced past her as she saw Donna work as a temp at the posh firm. She fell in love with Lance Bennett. That ass. He and Jimmy Stone were two peas in a pod. It just took a cup of coffee. It was poisoned coffee, but Rose couldn't help but ponder how tiny gestures changed lives. She looked away and pictured an odd man in leather grabbing her hand and saying, "Run."

"Oi, Rose you gotta keep on track. No time for that now," a Northern accent said. The software Doctor had changed to a face she hadn't seen in ages. "Can't you see he, I am disappearing. The Eye can't sustain his likeness anymore. Nothing good can come of that." Rose nodded a bittersweet yes.

"She's in the car with her Mum. Man, those are harsh things to say. Reminds me of my Mum when I worked at the shop. Then you blew up my job and I had nothing to do." The purple line started to vibrate. "There! Originally she went into the city, left! Now she is turning right to talk to this Jival Chowdry chap about the personal secretary job at the photocopying business."

"Right, now you have to focus on this moment. This is the wound where time is bleeding, June 25, 2007! Remember that Rose. My timeline ends December 25, 2007. Donna Noble needs to turn left. Time is mutating around her. There is a great big alternate reality forming around her because something changed this small event. She must be important if all of reality is in flux because of this. Something else is coming." The leather-clad Doctor had a reassuring hand on Rose's shoulder.

"That's a lot for a paperclip to say," Rose said cheekily.

"There isn't much time. But no, I am not just a paperclip. Apparently, I turn into a git. The Eye of Harmony is synced into parts of my time stream at the moment. In a way, a bit of my consciousness can appear as an interface. The walls are so cracked that my consciousness can bleed into this Universe. Since time is bleeding, I will remember this if or when you need to contact me. But you have to go. The Eye shouldn't be open this long."

"Doctor?"

"Yes?" The image was starting to fade.

"Oh it's nothing really… Thank you. I do miss the old face, y'know." Rose wrapped her arms around the diminishing figure.

"Fantastic." Rose could feel him smiling into her hair.

"I only wish I could've stayed with you longer. Oh well, same man different face," she felt the slight pressure of lips on her forehead.

"You have to go now, Rose Tyler."

She closed her eyes and felt as if the pit of her stomach was in a freefall. There was an immense pressure behind her eyes as she tried to blink them open. Then it was gone. Everything was just normal reality again.

"Rose?" The Byron-esque Doctor was offering her his hand. She let out a small laugh as he gently swung her into his arms. "Let's not do that again for a while," he whispered into her hair. She nodded. They stood still for countless breaths and beats of their heart(s).

"Did you get it?" Rose ask finally stepping away from him.

"Yes," he replied with a sigh.

"You were in there." The Doctor arched a brow. "Well, my other two versions of you," Rose added quickly.

"We opened my time stream and everything is in flux so it's possible that part of their or my consciousness were aware and tried to help. It seemed that I got the information a little too easy. Turn left. It's burnt into my mind like fireworks." He rubbed his temples.

"My current Doctor said he was a software program or guide. He disappeared."

"He might have been a remnant from the original time line. He probably didn't want to upset you. You humans and your emotions are complicated. You're so delicate." The Doctor winced even before he finished the last sentence. "I told you I can be inconsiderate." He put his hands up in surrender as Rose stared him down, arms akimbo.

"Then my original you explained it and said he would remember if we need him. I thought you loved us apes. Brilliant and creative you call us."

"Yes, the human race is marvelous." The Doctor stretched his arms out wide. "I have been known to grow attached to a select few now and again." He took Rose's hand from her hip and returned her into his arms with a spin. He looked down at her face and her eyes were sparkling.

"Why are you alone?" she asked in earnest. He stiffened and she saw hints of the On Coming Storm rearing his ugly head. "Sorry," she murmured.

"The War. The Time War. You've seen small parts of it. The problem is we are losing and with that comes desperation. The Time Lords are becoming almost as bad as the enemy. I have a sense that the War doesn't end well." Rose was about to speak up and the Doctor shook his head. "I'm trying to ignore the glaringly obvious fact that it would be simple for me to come rescue you with another Time Lord. I don't need to know."

The sparkle had left Rose's eyes and she was just shuffling her feet on the floor. "The walls are closed."

"That shouldn't matter, you just need two Time Lord ships. It's child's play. That is why my race only exists in one reality. Rassilon made it so we are trans-dimensional. All of time and space."

"You're rubbish on your own," she tried to say with a smirk. He didn't know what to think about her tongue peeking out the side of her mouth.

"Yes, I'm not alone now. The problem with humans and most companions is they leave. I run and they return to their lives; mortgages, families, children, jobs, and watching tele." His hands were cautiously exploring the planes of her back.

"Not me," Rose said as she molded her body closer to the Time Lord's. "I'm going to have to handcuff myself to you or something. So we don't get separated." She laughed as the Doctor gulped. Where the hell were her hands going? He let out a yelp as the girl playfully grabbed his arse.

"Always wanted to do that," she said. "Last time I waited and you see how that turned out. I'm not holding back anymore." The Doctor twitched as the golden light went against his shields again. There was something faintly familiar tugging the back of his mind. He smiled.

"I would expect nothing less," the Doctor smirked.

He lowered his mouth to hers and brought their bodies in closer. Humans had such body heat. This time there was a sort of frenzy. Their tongues played with each other, teasing, trying to outdo the other. He tried to out finesse the girl with a fancy swirl. She playfully nipped at his bottom lip and then did a move he couldn't describe. His head was buzzing and he felt as if there was fire running through his veins. This body had always been more physical, more human. Her hands were stuck in his hair and she was pulling him in closer. The gold light at the back of his mind was knocking against his shields louder. He lifted them partially and the warm gold light wrapped around his mind. It was full of that acceptance and warmth that he felt in cinema. He pulled away some and looked down at the girl.

"W'what?" Rose said a little thrown off.

"Are you sure we haven't done anything like this before? Can you remember anything?" Rose shook her head as she twisted a curl around her index finger. She was moving in closer. "Rose, we have to get going. Time is accelerated here. The TARDIS can compensate for now. I didn't realize it would be compromised here. It's probably because my timeline is changing." They both turned their heads when a panel started to light up. "Also your data is ready," he said with a smile. "Don't you have a report or some such nonsense to do?"

"Yup," she said with a pop on the p. "Guess what? Even better, you getta meet my Dad." The Doctor stiffened.

"Have I done this before?" He usually didn't do parents.

"Oh yes! You getta probably meet my Mum too. She slapped you once. You took me home a year late. Oh and Mickey is going to love this and Tony, my brother, knows all about you."

"I'm a Time Lord. I'm always on time. Who is Mikey? You have a brother?" he asked as he started downloading the data into Rose's "wrist watch."

"He was my boyfriend. Then you came a long and things got complicated." She couldn't help but wonder if the Doctor was smirking. His shoulders seemed straighter; if it was even possible for his posture to become straighter.

"And now?"

"What do you mean? We're just mates, best mates." She shrugged. The Doctor handed her the device and smiled. "Um Doctor?" Rose asked quietly.

"Yes?"

"Could you do me a favor? I know time is pressing, but can you change your outfit?" The Time Lord looked puzzled. "I work for Torchwood. It's kinda like Unit. We deal with aliens. My Dad runs it. But he only has so much power. If you waltz in there looking all Victorian –or whatever- it's going to make things difficult. Please, I don't want to do the paperwork." The Doctor shrugged.

"I guess I've gotten into quite a rut. Early twenty-first century?" he said with a fake sigh. The Time Lord undid his cravat and shimmied out of his jacket. "This will be quick. I'll meet you in the control room and we'll go make your report and meet your parents. Remember Rose, this is your goodbye. It's a one way trip and we're going to establish the walls again. If I couldn't get to you before… It'll be like it was." Rose nodded and grabbed his hand as they exited the room.

Rose was leaning back in the reading chair playing with her new data. They had found Donna Noble. Part one was accomplished. She was going home.

She forced a surge of emotions back. Was she happy or sad? It was bittersweet. There was a deep ache in her chest from seeing the Doctor dead. Then the paperclip Doctor had been him! He helped her. But even he faded. Her Time Lord was here. This new or earlier version of the Doctor was the same man. There was the same manic, brilliance behind his eyes. Their hands fit together the same way. It felt the same. He was going to help her. She was traveling with the Doctor again. She wasn't sure how Time Lords kept all this information straight.

Then, the Doctor appeared and her jaw hit the floor. Rose had to admit that she did miss the cravat. He was wearing a similar leather jacket to her first Doctor, but the buttons were gold. It also looked new. It was very black and very shiny. The breeches had been exchanged for normal jeans, and he had a messenger bag.

"Where did your hair go?" She ran her hands through the shortened locks. His curly hair had been tamed into a more modern look. Some locks still popped up defiantly.

"What? I cut it. More modern and all that. Don't want your parents thinking I'm some hoodlum." Rose had to hide a smile.

"How'd you do that in 5 minutes?" He shrugged at her and started pushing buttons and pulling levers.

"I'm a Time Lord," was his only reply. "There we go Old Girl, it won't be long now." He lightly caressed the console. "Come on Rose Tyler, let's go meet your parents," he said with a grin.


	4. Chapter 4

Flux

By Kimmzie

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who

Author's Note: Thanks for the support. Please read, review and enjoy.

"Rose Tyler, member of the twenty-first century corporate grind," the Doctor quipped as she pushed her way through the revolving door.

Rose poked her tongue through her teeth and shrugged stiffly in her jacket. She kept awkwardly pulling down the sleeves. The Time Lord looked at the pavement. He didn't do laundry. Nonetheless, when the jacket had shown up on the reading chair it had been cleaner and smelt like detergent from the 25th century. The label said it had a blend of fifteen different hybridized flowers mixed together for optimum freshness and there was supposed to be fluffiness. Wasn't a hybrid a sort of blend and mix of genetic material? Semantics! He sighed to himself. English had always been too complicated and simple at the same time. It was amazing that language survives for so long.

"C'mon, yeah?" Rose was knocking on the glass next to the rotating door. The Doctor smiled with a nod and smoothly joined her inside the building. "Scared," she said with a challenge.

"Scared? Me? Never! If I was scared, I would never freely admit it. Maybe once or twice," the Time Lord replied brushing back his shortened locks. "What

now?" He reached in his pocket and produced his sonic screwdriver.

"No." She gave him a playful shove. "I work here and you're a consultant. We get you a badge," she continued. She pushed the sonic back into his pocket. "You've had to check-in places before. You know," Rose trailed off as the Doctor looked at her unblinking.

The two approached the front desk that was manned by a very perky redhead. "Welcome to Torchwood London, Miss Tyler. May I see your badge?"

Rose smiled and exchanged a few pleasantries as she presented a small id badge. "Who is this with you now?" the redhead Rose called Cynthia asked, peaking over Rose's shoulder.

"Ah Hello, I'm the Doctor." He smiled.

"Doctor?" Cynthia asked with a pause to her typing.

"Don't worry Cynthia, he's Doctor John Smith. He's a specialist I met on my last mission. Just give him a badge and we'll head over to the meeting in development," Rose replied with a smile.

Cynthia eyed the Doctor curiously and continued to do an awful lot of typing. She picked up the phone and announced the presence of the pair to an extremely elated party on the other line. "Oh no Rose, go right to the Commander's office. He sounds excited." The Doctor ignored Rose's frown. He made his badge with a big v dance in front of her face. Rose just shook her head.

"Well, get ready to meet my Dad, Pete," she said quietly. "He's not going to like this," she murmured to herself. The Doctor smiled brightly down at Rose who was worrying her lip. The two walked hand and hand into the elevator. The Doctor swung Rose's arm carelessly.

"Don't worry, parents love me," he whispered in her ear. "It's mostly governments and religious institutions you have to worry about," he trailed off.

"Like UNIT?" Rose asked cheekily.

"I still do that?" Rose answered noncommittally with a shrug.

"Almost there," Rose said breaking the silence. "Feel at ease to speak freely here. Torchwood security is top of the line. No secrets leaked here." She put two fingers to her lips and shook her head.

The elevator doors opened with a cheerful ding. "Oh I like that noise. Rose, remind me to remember that noise," he said offhandedly. Rose was already halfway down the corridor. He easily caught up with her in a few strides. When had they stopped holding hands? "Are bugs something you have to worry about on a daily basis?"

"Security is of the utmost importance to Torchwood, Doctor Smith," Rose replied automatically.

"I see. Quite so, very apparent," the Doctor murmured, as he mentally went over the contents of his satchel.

"Here we are, Pete Tyler Commander of Torchwood." Rose smiled, as she pulled on the big opaque glass doors to his office.

A balding, middle aged man bearing a resemblance to Rose stood up and extended a hand. "Doctor Smith, it is a pleasure having you on for consultation on this project."

"Commander Tyler, it is a pleasure to finally meet you," the Doctor said coolly eyeing the room. Pete sat down at his desk and pushed a few buttons. The doors closed, the lights got a reddish tint, and there was a faint hum. Pete gave Rose a thumbs up. The Doctor took out his screw driver and scanned the area, adding to the red light.

"Your security seems to be in order. There are no additional eyes or ears in the room," he said to the man. "Hello again. I'm the Doctor."

"You don't remember me?" Pete asked uneasy. "The Cyberman? Torchwood on your world? I can see you regenerated, but did you hit your head or something?" Rose smiled.

"No, Dad. It's the Doctor! He hasn't met you yet. He's from the Doctor's past."

"Does this happen a lot? You meeting people who've met you, or you've met that don't know you?" The Doctor nodded. "Isn't this bad for time? Can't we swap you out for the other one?" Rose glared at her Dad in a huff.

"I'm the Doctor. I'm still a Time Lord and I can see how the timelines are in flux. I can fix whatever needs to be mended," the Doctor replied calmly. "Reality is fracturing, that is why your dimension cannon has been working and my TARDIS got sucked through. I expect you detected the TARDIS quite a while ago." The Time Lord nodded to the reports on his desk. "Am I the cause of this extra surveillance?" he asked. His inquisitive eyes scanned the room.

"We've been having trouble with the Government stepping in the past few months. They've wanted to acquire some of our more dangerous weapons to defend our country. The President has been very persistent especially after the War. People are afraid." The Doctor frowned.

"There was a War with the Cyberman. There are still some mucking about. After what we saw of Torchwood in my world we are trying to make a different one. Dad is very protective of development."

"Please, tell me the future me disapproves of you developing technology from alien wreckage. The road to hell is usually paved with the noblest of intentions," the Doctor said softly. "Is your government aware of the TARDIS?"

"Not so much. Your bio-scan just appears odd on our sensors and activates the bugs that I have strategically left. You might end up on a biopsy table if they knew," Pete trailed off.

"I regenerated into this body on an operation table and I don't want to do so again," the Doctor said with a chuckle.

"Well then, what are you exactly doing here? Did you find the right Doctor?" Pete looked over to Rose. She was trying to fight off tears as her eyes became glassy.

"The Doctor, my Doctor is dead. Something has changed; he drowned. I saw him. I was too late." The Doctor put a gentle hand to her shoulder without a thought.

"We already suspected that was going to happen, sweetheart," Pete said.

"Something has changed my timeline. The whole thing is in flux, that's why I am here," the Doctor chimed in. "With the TARDIS we got the data we need to fix the point in my timeline and reunite Rose with my future self. You don't have to tear holes in dimensions anymore. We'll just use the TARDIS."

"He said coming here was impossible. He left her on a bloody beach." Pete turned to the Doctor with a glare. How was he turning that pink? "He led her all the way to a beach in Norway. Didn't even finish…."

"Dad! Future!" Rose interjected.

"Well, he's the same man, ain't he? This poor girl is trying so hard to get to him and keep the stars from going out." Pete was now a lovely shade of red. "How can you come here and return her back to her original world?"

"I'm from a different time," the Doctor replied with a crooked grin. "Something must have happened in my future that makes travel between dimensions impossible," he continued grimly.

"Can she come back once the timeline is reinstated?" Pete asked. His face was fading to a peach-ish color. The Doctor shook his head. Pete looked over to his adopted daughter, he opened his mouth but only breath came out.

"She is not meant to be here. She never existed in this Universe. Therefore, time is compensating around her for now. Without proper manipulation or a TARDIS protecting her, I cannot guarantee how long she will be safe."

"Well, he certainly sounds like the other one," Pete chuckled as the Doctor stiffened. "How are we gonna tell your Mother?"

Rose shrugged. "We all knew this was gonna happen one day," she replied and looked up at the Doctor. "I have a few days anyway, right Doctor?"

"I have to make some preparations. You have two or three days," the Doctor replied. Pete was focused on the pairs interlaced fingers.

"Right, I guess I'm not getting my dimension cannon back," Pete said morosely.

"Oh you can. It just won't do anything anymore. Oh, it can still tell time but it runs five minutes fast, sorry. I can't have you punching anymore holes in the fabric of reality. The whole set-up in sub-basement 2 room 3 is also experiencing a fatal error."

"Yup, that's definitely your Doctor, sweetheart." Pete smiled. "Go make your report and try to be creative with how you got the data. I guess the Doctor has his own work to do. I'll handle your Mother. Just go to the house after you're done. Nice to meet you again, Doctor," Pete said extending his hand again. The Doctor grasped it firmly.

Rose ignored the curious looks from her co-workers as she grabbed the Doctor's arm.

"Is this really appropriate? Do you want to draw additional attention to yourself?" The Doctor looked over to a pair of gawking interns.

"Yup. That's the idea. Just follow my lead. You didn't seem to care before," she said, her tongue playfully poking through her teeth. He raised a curious brow but readjusted her arm to fit around his.

The Time Lord couldn't help notice that several eyes were following them as they walked down the sidewalk. Rose just smiled and pulled the Doctor in closer to her. They made their way to a nondescript bench a few blocks from Torchwood. There was a quiet contentment in the air.

"Should there be people taking pictures of us?" the Doctor asked dryly.

"Yup! Any other ears listening?" she asked. The Doctor took out his screwdriver and with a few clicks he smiled.

"Not anymore. Why do you want people taking pictures of you, us?" The Doctor felt her comfortable weight lean into him. He could see distant flashes and hear clicks.

"I can't just disappear. Pete went to all that trouble creating this sort of long lost daughter story. The papers loved it. I'm the missing heiress. So when I go, I'm going to run away with a mysterious stranger." She leaned over and batted her eyes dramatically. Where had she found the mascara?

"A mysterious stranger you say," the Doctor said.

"We play it up for the cameras for the next few days. I say, well, you know goodbye." Rose's body went stiff. She was still playing with the sleeves of her coat. "Blimey, I think this thing shrunk. Can the void shrink your clothes?" The Doctor looked away with a shrug.

"So then Rose Tyler, what do we do now?" She was so warm at his side he didn't mind that the bench was digging into his back.

"C'mon then, we give'em a show, eh." She nodded her head over to some bushes. She took his face in her hands and pulled his hair back. "We need this all over the tabloids to look legit. We might even make the evening edition. They're kinda mad for that sort'of thing."

"Oh, I bet they would love it. Or are you just looking for excuses?" He leaned in closer.

"Hmmmph," Rose replied. The Doctor had closed the gap between them. The Time Lord was consuming Rose's lips. It was her mouth now. Well, the only word eloquent enough to convey the action in the tabloids was snogging or ravishing (if you went for a racy mag).

The Doctor was everywhere. She could feel his hands in her hair and sliding down her back. Her jacket was so tight, she was breathless. His tongue battled hers for an easily won dominance. She had to slip away for a breath of air that was quickly stolen. She felt something around the peripherals of her lobby. There was the blueish light she recognized from the Eye of Harmony.

She pulled away and the Doctor looked at her quizzically. He was not breathless at all. Stupid Time Lords and their respiratory bypass. "What was that?" she asked breathlessly.

"What?"

"That!" Rose pointed to her temples. "There was something near my lobby. Like this blueish thing calling or trying to get in."

The Doctor frowned and let out a sigh. Everything had been so dark and gray. He felt old. His feet dragged heavier against the pavement every day. How did he not leave a path of cracks in his wake? The ghosts and ghouls of the Time War were constantly moaning, whispering in his head. But now, there was a golden light. His mind was drawn to it. It made things lighter. He didn't want to run as far.

"Doctor!" She nodded towards him. Suddenly, there was that golden light shining against his shields.

"Oh you clever girl." He smiled. He kept his shields up and Rose pouted in concern. "You don't want to go in there right now. It's not the best place to be," he whispered darkly. "A Time Lord's mind is a bit tricky. The question is how you can do that? You're not supposed to have that. Humanity doesn't develop the skill for millennia and it's limited. Well, another question for the metaphorical pile."

He pushed himself past her shields and smiled. He felt like he was basking in sunshine even though it was cloudy. "You've already been invited," she replied with a shrug. "I guess that was enough of a show. Time to go do paperwork; lots and lots of paperwork." She slouched and her jacket started to tear along a few seams. "Well, you go and do your tinkering and calibrating. Need to be in ship shape. Stay in London. I don't want you slipping through a crack or nothing without me." She gave him a playful nudge. All the Doctor could do was push back.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Rose Tyler," he said grabbing her hand and showing off for the cameras. He never really had to show off, he was always brilliant.

"You haven't met my mum yet," Rose countered. There was a buzzing from her pocket. Rose took out a mobile and laughed. "Oh, you get to meet my Mum in a suit. Suit and tie that is. No Byron or Victorian stuff."

"How many times are you going to make me change my clothes?"

"Are you scared of doing laundry?" Rose smiled. She held her sleeve to him, it was splitting in two. "It smells like the last time you tried to do my laundry. You lost a bet and had no money to repay me. I don't think we can fix it this time," Rose paused. "Are you blushing Doctor?"

"Time Lords don't blush or do laundry apparently," he replied.

"I'll meet you at the TARDIS when I'm done with my paperwork. I have to start getting things in order," Rose said. She squeezed his hand and went through the revolving doors.

Rose Tyler sighed as she looked over her reports. She had to creatively explain how the dimension cannon had shorted out. She noted Dr. John Smith as a consultant on the project. In the conclusion of the report, she stated that finding the Doctor was no longer plausible and the project should be abandoned. She then wrote an eloquent, heart wrenching resignation letter. She couldn't help but grin the whole time. Suddenly, the letters on her screen started to go all wiggly and her typing got slower. There was a buzzing in her ears that wouldn't go away.

She closed her eyes and tried to focus on the monitor. It wasn't her monitor anymore. It was covered in post-its with random circular script. She was in her lobby. "What, what is going on here?" Rose looked around to see blue eyes smiling at her.

"Hello there. You are in a safe place, aren't you?" His Northern accent made her heart skip a beat from ache. Like the old photo she kept of him on her mobile.

"You're in my head again." Rose looked around. "Where are you?"

"I'm just calibrating the TARDIS so I can bring you through. I'm using you as a focal point. I was able to lock into you through the Eye of Harmony. Just like the future me with the crazy hair. Better you than that dandy that's walking around. Time is in flux enough"

"When are you?"

"I just gave Margaret to a new family, dropped you off at your Mum's, and dropped Jack off," he stopped abruptly. "Who bloody well knows where Jack is. I'll find him sooner or later. Now, I'm in Cardiff waiting to pull you through the rift."

"Will I see you again?" She went closer to him.

"I don't know," he replied darkly. "It's not just my timeline that has been changed. All these timelines converging on this Donna person is odd, seems to be a side note. I'm not at the right point to see," he trailed off shaking his head. "Never mind that now. I need you to concentrate." He came close to her and showed her an orange post-it with circular-script. "When you are ready think of that, as hard as you can. It's my coordinates."

"Right, why don't you tell yourself?"

"No, no, nope, don't think so. I don't get along well with myself. Anyway, future Rose Tyler I'd rather deal with you," he said with a smile. "Gotta run, someone is trying to wake you up. You owe me a drink if it's Ricky the idiot." The Ninth Doctor faded from her vision.

"Rose, Rose, wake up." A steady hand was shaking her shoulder.

"Oi, wha, what? I'm awake," she replied looking up at Mickey.

"Paperwork can't be that dull. Did you really find him? He's here? Pete didn't explain it all but he said that the Doctor was here. That I had to see it to believe it. Don't know what that means, " Mickey said.

"Blimey, didn't think you'd be excited to see him," Rose countered.

"Yeah well, if you're happy then I'm happy. Are you?"

"Yup. I am. I am also done with paperwork. So I guess you're coming to Mum's tonight?" She leaned back in her chair. She glanced at the clock on her screen. "Just gotta file and send and," she stammered as Mickey rolled his eyes. "What?"

"He really is back. You never get this," he paused, "this giddy." He waved his arms in the air hopelessly. "Pete also says this is for good. You're leaving. You're leaving again but this time it's for good."

"I can't come back."

"Can you stay? Would you stay if you could? You've gone through so much since the Doctor left. You and me have seen so much. You're different. We were close again," Mickey trailed off.

"Yeah best mates, you and me. We are defenders of the Earth." She got up and wrapped her arms around him. "You know I can't," she whispered into his shoulder.

"Yeah I know. You made your choice the moment you ran into that bloody blue box," Mickey said with a chuckle. "We could of had a good life together."

"But there is so much more out there. There is so much more at stake. You wouldn't go back to before, would you?" Rose could feel Mickey's head moving. She didn't know if it was a nod or shake. She didn't look up from his chest. "You could come with us. Go back home." Rose stepped away.

"You know that wouldn't work. I got a life here. A good life. Someone has to keep defending this place," Mickey laughed.

"You met a girl," Rose said dead pan.

"Yeah maybe I did, Her name is Martha. She's a doctor. I might have my own doctor," he teased. Rose stuck her tongue out. "Oh-ho, do you mean it's official? Has he said it back?" Rose was pale.

"We are what we are. It doesn't need defining."

"I'm gonna have a talk with him, just you wait and see."

Rose just shook her head. "Oh right, I'd like to see that. It's alright. It's brilliant. It's going to be fantastic." She gathered up her papers and waved him out of the office. "Well partner, that is my last status report." She gave him a nudge and went down the hall. "See you at Mum's."

She cringed inwardly when she realized she owed the Doctor a drink.

The TARDIS hummed as her doors opened and Rose Tyler entered. "Doctor? Are you there?"

"Yes, yes I'm here." He appeared from under the console with a band of wires hanging from his teeth. His silver sonic was grasped in one hand with some sort of strange manual in the other. He put the wires into a socket.

"How's it going?"

"It's going slowly. Reality and the timelines keep shifting. I got into an argument with my future self, who will no longer speak to me. The one with the Northern accent as you would put it, and the leather. Did he contact you?"

Rose nodded. "Gave me some coordinates or something."

"Good." The Doctor folded down a page in the manual and set it down.

"We have to go to the mansion. It's better if I explain all this to my Mum. I'll just go find something to wear. You go too," she added.

The Doctor was tapping his foot and looking at his watch. The timekeeper had decided it would rather spin in circles than tell time. His timeline was in flux. He slammed it in spite and shoved it in his vest pocket.

Rose cleared her throat as she entered the control room. "So whatcha think?" she asked shyly as she twirled her dress. She wore a dark pink halter that had an assortment of glitter. A lot of glitter to be precise. Her blonde hair was held up by a fancy pin. The silver pin had elaborate roses that peaked through curly locks.

"You do look beautiful," he admonished. "Should I get a top hat or something? Maybe a cane?"

"Are you trying to be the guy on the Monopoly box?"

"I just feel under dressed. Maybe a bow tie," he mused.

"I don't think you need all that yet," she replied as she straightened his tie. "Ready, mysterious stranger?" Rose linked her arm around his. His feet felt lighter with every step.

The ride to the mansion was uneventful. Rose answered minor details about her life in Pete's World. She gave monosyllabic responses when he asked what happened during her jumps with the dimension cannon. "Inside the house should be okay. You just hafta be Dr. John Smith for a little while. My Mum loves throwing these parties. She's a pro by now. Keeps Vitex stock up. Or, she claims it does. Oh, Tony is going to love you."

The Doctor was surprised by the size of the house as Rose drove up the gravel path. "My mum redid the whole thing. We didn't have much money back home. Now she has everything. More than everything really."

The Doctor was able to smoothly open the driver side door and help Rose up. "How do you walk in those?" He pointed to her heels.

"No running today, I hope."

It took less than a second for Rose to get in the door and Jackie Tyler came at her. From the look on the woman's face the Doctor wanted to run. Rose pushed him behind a vase.

"What is this? Snogging on a public bench? Rose Marion Tyler, what is all this going on? Do you really think you can hide him behind a plant?" Jackie said, as she glared at the vase. "Don't think that I can't see you! C'mon, I know it's you. Did it again, didn't you?"

The Doctor stepped out smoothly as one could from behind an ornamental fern. Rose grabbed a leaf from his hair and he straightened his jacket. "Now there, I did nothing wrong," he said with a grin. "No!" he interjected, as Jackie was about to speak. "There is no need to make a scene," he said in a soft tone. Jackie looked at the Doctor as if he had two heads.

"Did he hit his head or something?" she asked turning to Rose. "Does he need tea again? He's not yelling, rolling his eyes, or jumping about. Are you alright, sweetheart?"

"No Mum." Rose smiled shaking her head. "He's just different. I'll explain upstairs, yeah? Doctor you just go and mingle."

"Lovely to meet you, Mrs. Tyler," the Doctor said with a nod of the head.

"Did he just bow? Are you sure he didn't get hit on the head or some weird space disease?

Rose steered her Mum up towards the grand staircase and gave the Doctor a quick wink over her shoulder.

The Doctor straighten his shoulders, smoothed back his hair and went towards the bar. What would Rose drink? As he went through the room, there were a few familiar faces from the hallway of Torchwood. Timelines came to him easily in this body. Everywhere he went there was a glimpse of what a person could or would become. When he felt the urge he would nudge people in a certain direction. Change an answer on an exam, just small details. Apparently some woman from Cheswick, not turning left had derailed his whole future. He noncommittally ordered some kind of fruity drink from the menu for Rose. It looked pinkish.

"Well, well, well," a low voice said from behind him. "It's you isn't it? I saw the picture in the tabloids and couldn't believe it. I see you changed your face again."

The Doctor looked over to the younger man. The Time Lord inwardly sighed, he had a feeling this human was just starting on some practiced speech. Speeches were only truly good when they came from him. Him and a very small pool of very talented people. Tragically, the pool was a puddle. This man's timeline was connected to Rose's very closely. Even now they floated closely together throughout the fabric of reality. "Mickey, is it?" the Doctor asked with a frown.

"Yes it's me, Doctor," he said shortly. "You can't even remember me? Mickey? Rickey the idiot?" Mickey took a gulp of something that smelt like whiskey.

"I apologize. You know me," he said with a sigh. "I have not met you yet." He raised the martini glass that contained the mysterious pink liquid. "I can gather that you are Mickey Smith. Hello, I'm the Doctor," he said, taking a sip of the drink. It tasted like apples.

"Y'you're from the past then? Before the Doctor met Rose?" The Doctor nodded. He took another sip. "And you're just snogging her on a park bench," he said with a sneer. Mickey crinkled his nose and rubbed it, scowling. "How long have you known her? She's known you for years. Searched for you for years."

The Doctor stood very still and was very quiet. He looked at the reflection of the man in his glass. Quietly he opened up his time senses to be ravaged. He wanted to see what Mickey Smith was, could be. Blood curdling screams chilled his blood as they leaked through as a sort of static. The Time War was still at his heels. He shut them out! He could hear the morose requiem of stars going super nova. But now there was Mickey Smith, he was a strong red line that encircled Rose's for a few years.

He didn't go into details. All he wanted to know was if he loved her. He felt the warmth connecting the two streams. Love was the stickiest glue. He refused to go deeper. There was flash of a new attachment. A new pink line was starting to encircle Mickey's timeline, Martha.

"Hello! Are you even listening to me?" Mickey was very close to the Doctor's face. The Time Lord found his hot ethanol soaked breath on his cheek a nuisance.

"Just a moment, if you please!" The Doctor backed away. "You love her don't you?" he asked softly. "There was a tiny hope that if you waited long enough, fought hard enough; she would love you again."

"Stop it!" Mickey murmured. "We're best mates, that's all."

"Love is strong. Strongest thing in the Universe, really. Someone could market it as a sort of glue, I imagine. It can tie timelines together for years; it matures them, enriches them. Aren't you both better from the point where you started?" The Doctor raised a brow and took another sip. "You have every right to come with us and return to your home. You can try to pursue Rose." Mickey eyes grew wider and he swirled the ice cubes in his drink. "But I believe both of us know my intentions." He pointed at a magazine on the bar. "I believe you have experienced the same from my future selves."

"I don't know Doctor, what are your intentions?" Mickey said in a mock impersonation. "Snogging? Leaving her behind in London, on a spaceship, and in Norway?"

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. "If you haven't figured it out by now, then there is no use in continuing this conversation," he said through his teeth. "Does it really need saying? Simple human words don't convey enough. Your language is so small and limited. All this curiosity, emotion, creativity, and everything and you are so limited by your semantics."

"What?"

"You," he said sweeping his hand across the room, "humans are thick." The Doctor was knocked back when Mickey gave him a right hook. The Time Lord braced himself against the bar. His knuckles turned white as his fist gripped the fancy counter. "Call Martha back," he said and walked away.

Mickey reached in his pocket and saw he had a new voice message. Martha Jones' photo pleasantly smiled up at him from the screen. He looked up and the Doctor was gone.

"What did you do?" Rose asked as she saw the Doctor's bruising eye.

"It'll be gone by morning. It's just a minor flesh wound." He held a glass of ice cubes to his cheekbone and leaned back in a chair. "Some of your compatriots found my explanation quite thrilling."

"Mickey says it was a misunderstanding. I don't know. He was on the phone and didn't want to talk about it. Are you gonna talk about it?"

"I think both parties made their view on the subject matter clear." He looked out the doorway to the thinning crowd. "How did your conversation go?"

"She wants a word with you after the party."

"A word? Haven't done much of that. Is that normal?"

Rose answered with a grin. "She doesn't think you're diseased anymore."

"Now that's a silver lining," he replied. "There are some awful things you can catch out there." He slouched further back into the chair.

"It can't be that bad." Rose leaned against the arm of the chair. The Doctor placed a cool hand on her leg.

"Oh, this?" He gestured to the glass. "No, I had this awful shot of something that tasted like a pear. Terrible stuff! I'm trying to counteract the..." the Doctor was cut off as Rose kissed the top of his head. She handed him a glass full of more pink stuff. He gingerly took a sip and toasted her.

"Strawberry-banana," they said in unison.

"Better?" she asked. Somehow she had ended up in his lap. "I had to explain to my Mum why I was," she ended in a sigh. "Why I was with a man I've only known about three days. It took some explaining to convince her that you were the same man. Time travel and dimension hopping tend to complicate things. I had to point out that she was married to an alternate version of her dead husband. That kind of made her go quiet. So good luck!" Rose said brightly. The Doctor took a gulp from her glass. "Blimey, does that stuff even work on you?"

"Sometimes out of necessity, but no, Time Lords have enzymes that battle the ethanol."

"Well, this human is going to drink up." She reclaimed her glass, slapped his leg a few times and went towards the bar. "It's my going away party."

A few hours and shots later, Rose found the Doctor entering the front door. She leaned against the rail of the staircase and smiled. "Where'd you go off to?"

"I took a car to the TARDIS. I needed to attend to some details about our trip." He shrugged out of his suit jacket. "Is the party over?"

"Yup! My Mum is in bed. So...you're safe for tonight," she said with a wobble.

"I'm sorry I have to do this," the Doctor said hesitantly. "You're going to need all your faculties." She cringed at the yellow bottle he pulled from his pocket.

"Oi, where did that come from? Eww, no. Not the yellow stuff. I had it once." She cringed and her face morphed into a horrified grimace.

"Well then, you know what to expect. It will cancel out all the toxins in your system, including the alcohol." She pouted and took the bottle. It was gone in one gulp.

"Woah! Talk about a head rush," Rose said. "I guess I got a little carried away. It was just nice to be at home." The Doctor scowled, defining the fine lines around his features. "To be normal. I don't know. Like it was one last hurrah." The Doctor took her hand and bowed his head. "It's like there is a storm coming all of a sudden."

"You have no idea," he whispered into her hair. "Come on, off to bed. Sleep it all off," the Doctor said in a lighter tone. "No, don't. Just leave it for now." He held up his hand as Rose tried to question him. "Do you trust me?"

She nodded.

"Off to bed. For now, just off to bed and leave it at that."


	5. Chapter 5

Flux

Disclaimer: I don't own Doctor Who

Author's Note: Oh, that was complicated to write. Read, Enjoy, and Review.

Rose snuggled into her comforter, as she pulled it closer. The Doctor had bid her a quiet good night at the door with a kiss to the hand. Unfortunately, he had rigidly perked up and murmured something about fixing the stabilizers. With a stiff bow he had turned swiftly on his heels and was gone. There was something unsettling in the air. She felt as if it was the calm before the storm. With more rumination, Rose decided she would go after the Time Lord. She turned over in bed and met a familiar pair of brown eyes.

"And here you are Rose Tyler, defender of the Earth. No, sorry that doesn't sound right. Rose Tyler defender of, oh well, the Universe really, all Universes." He was leaning against her old dresser. But he shouldn't be here. There was a pit settling at the bottom of her stomach. The storm was nigh.

"Doctor?"

"Correctomundo, Oh, and I said I would never say that again," he replied.

"Are you alright? I mean I don't even understand how you're here. How are you here?" Rose questioned as she started to get up from her bed.

"Rose, I really don't know. I was with Queen Elizabeth in the 1500's, we got married and stuff got fuzzy. Good Queen Bess," he said with a crooked grin. There was a strange manic gleam in his eye.

"You got married?" Rose asked in a huff. "I didn't know you were," she ended in a sigh.

"I thought she was a Zygon," he answered simply. "Forget it Rose, that doesn't matter. There is something going on. This has already happened for me. Donna turned left and we were together again for a time. You fixed it."

"Yeah, and you're not with me now? You're married to the Queen of England or this Zygon thing."

"No, no, no," the Time Lord stuttered as he came closer to her. "You're back here in Pete's world with your family and a version of me. It's complicated. You see, there is a second version of me with one heart that committed genocide. He can grow old with you and possibly have a family. You know, carpets and mortgages."

"So I find you and I get stuck here again? On top of that, I get stuck with a second you- that is you, but isn't? Is there a point to all this? Should we even be talking about this future?" she asked dumbstruck. The bed sank with the added weight of the Time Lord. He ran his fingers through his hair and bowed his head. "Does the other Doctor know you're here, the posh one? He's in the TARDIS getting ready for us to leave in a few hours. We're going to save you."

Suddenly, the Time Lord perked up. "Ah yes, and that Rose Tyler is what I want you to do. Molto-bene, just the right thing to say. Oh you are brilliant Rose Tyler, you are. Time is in flux. Reality is cracking and it's all a wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey mess. I started getting memories from my eighth body that I never had before." His eyes turned darker. "You kissed me," he said with a smirk. How could his eyebrows go up and down that fast, and be that suggestive?

"Yup, and you kissed me the next two times," Rose said, raising the stakes. The Time Lord stared at her and placed a light caress to her cheek.

"We snogged on a bench in public, in front of the media." He pressed harder and his fingers found her lips. "Is that really how you see me?" His hand continued to smoothly stroke and found a strand of hair. "Is that how devastated you can become all because I'm not there? I saw it all. All the stuff you showed him in your cinema. Nice lobby by the way."

"You're the one that saw it," Rose replied with a laugh. She was rigid as a board, as the Doctor's hands continued their exploration. "I waited five and a half hours on a space station. I've been ripping holes in reality to find you. I said I love you. What more do you need Doctor? I promised you my forever." She could feel the blueish presence caressing at the door of her mind. She let it in and the Doctor sighed.

"Can't you see? That's what I want. I want forever with you! Time is in flux. Something has changed in my past and your future. But the pieces don't fit. I'm missing something," he hesitated

"If you pull any harder your hair is going to come out," Rose teased. She gave it a playful tussle. The Doctor retaliated with a gently tug to Rose's hair. That tug arose to some light tickling. This then escalated to tickling (camouflaged as heavy petting). This in turn resulted with Rose and the Doctor tangled up in each other's arms. Rose was breathless.

"Well this is interesting, clearly you have found me." The Eighth Doctor was leaning against Rose's door frame. "Did you really think you could deadlock seal my TARDIS for long? I was going to let you talk like we discussed."

"What'cha do that for?" Rose asked getting herself from under the Doctor. Her hair seemed to be caught on one of the buttons of his suit. The Doctor didn't notice. He was too busy trying to stare down his past self. Rose finally tugged it out.

"Still running from the Time War I see. Did you try to go to the end of the Universe for hope yet? I wouldn't. It's not that bright," the Doctor said darkly.

"Well, I guess you've been. Anyway, you find hope in different ways," the Eighth Doctor replied. The Time Lord on the bed tried to ignore how his former self was looking at Rose. The Tenth Doctor's hand grasped Rose's shoulder. "So, you've come to change your past? Is that why you're holding on? Your timeline has ended in this stream; you shouldn't exist."

"I changed a fixed point in time. I am or was the Time Lord Victorious. Time can be rewritten. But, it went wrong," he replied. "I was off to the Ood planet because they kept calling me. There is this prophecy, you see. It says, 'he will knock four times.' And then, I die. Apparently, my song is ending." He couldn't look Rose in the eye. Her hand covered his.

"A prophecy?" The Eighth Doctor furrowed his brow. "I guess it was from a credible source."

The pinstriped Doctor nodded.

"The problem is when I changed the fixed point, events felt different for a time after. It was like a change of tempo in the streams. It goes from a normal marcia moderato tempo to a prestissimo tempo. But only for an instant, and then it kind of just goes into a rallentando." Rose raised a brow and tugged on the Doctor's sleeve. "Oh, he loves classical music. Great stuff it is. I loved that phase. I was talking fancy time travel talk and that's how it translated. We are near his TARDIS, so his translations. " The Doctor smiled.

"The slow one is about 85 beats per minute a moderate pace. Just around the pace of a human heart. The faster pace is very, very fast. That's over 178 beats per minute. Something that fast on a classical instrument sounds like drunken cats howling. That is, unless you're very good. And yes, I'm going through a classical music phase." The Eighth Doctor replied stoically. He wore a blank mask on his face. "What is the point?"

"I was in 1500's England and got into my TARDIS. And then it was like time was spinning around me in a tempest. There was a golden light everywhere. The TARDIS shut down and I ended up here, Pete's world. I don't even understand how the TARDIS is keeping the paradox away. I feel like another fixed point in time has been changed. Did you feel anything?"

"Something has felt odd ever since I landed here. I just thought it was the circumstances."

"This is not what originally happens. She does it on her own," the Doctor said with a confident nod towards Rose.

"What are you trying to change?" the Eighth Doctor questioned cautiously and his stance relaxed a bit.

"This time, I want Rose to stay with me. The Time Lord me, that is. I also want to prevent genocide." The Doctor in the pinstripes approached his counterpart.

"It could go wrong. The fabric of reality could collapse," the younger Doctor countered.

"Look around, it's already happening. Something is playing with my, our time stream. I don't want to go. I don't want to lose her. We just have to fix the time stream and alter one single event."

"You should know that there is no such thing as a tiny event. Especially when we're crossing our timelines."

"I think we can fix the problem with three Time Lords there."

"You're including the Northern one in on this, aren't you?"

"Correctemundo! Oh there I go again. I don't think that works, does it? Rose, stop me from saying that."

"Excuse me. Doctor. Doctors. Won't there be reapers if you go about changing things? Don't I get a say in any of this?"

"Why don't you want to stay with me?" The pinstriped Doctor's voice wavered.

"Did I get a choice?" Rose whispered. She was trembling. " Did I get a bloody choice, Doctor? You leave me! You sent me home during the Daleks! You left Sarah Jane. You went to France through the time window. I could see her. Faint traces of her every time you came into my lobby. But I didn't care. You sent me here, during the Daleks and Cyberman! Apparently, you leave me here again... Even when I fix this. I get you back. You just leave me." Her hazel eyes darted in-between the two Time Lords.

"Oh Rose, you made a choice that day." The Tenth Doctor took both her hands. "I'm giving you a choice now Rose Tyler. A choice very few people get to make. I, we can reset time as it was originally intended to run. I will make sure you forget him." He nodded to his counterpart behind him. "This version of me will also be gone."

"What will happen?"

"You will keep jumping with the dimension cannon. Ripping more holes in the fabric of reality. Which in hindsight is not too brilliant for reality. You find Donna and fix time. All sort of complicated bits happen; you know, spoilers. We end up in a beach in Norway, here in Pete's world."

Rose tried to free her hands and turn away.

"Just wait. Let him finish," the Eighth Doctor urged her from the corner.

"I didn't have much time because the part-human Doctor came out of a two way biological meta-crisis."

"Haven't heard of that one yet. So, this Donna had your, our mind?" the Eighth Doctor chimed in. His counterpart nodded.

"She was gonna burn," the Tenth Doctor said darkly.

"So you had a spare Time Lord. You just thought you would leave him here with me?"

"Oh, Donna was so much better at explaining this sort of thing." The Time Lord ran a free hand through his spikey hair. "Does it really need saying? He could tell you the one thing I can't tell you." He let go of her hand and hunched over.

"Remember, we are full Time Lords. We're not a human, different courting rituals and all that nonsense," the Eighth Doctor added cautiously.

"I said Rose Tyler. He said the other thing," the Tenth Doctor said gesturing to the empty air. "He could give you one life. You could have children, a house, a job, and be with your family. You even got a piece of TARDIS coral to grow. He is me, same man-same mind, but he has one life."

"You keep saying that. One life. I haven't changed my mind. I want to be with the Doctor." She looked between both the Doctors, past and present- or however that works. "Nothing needs to be said. Oh, if the internet ever knew that this sort of thing could happen. I don't even wanna go there," she said shaking her head cheekily. The pinstriped Doctor's posture straightened.

He smiled over to her, "Rose Tyler, I was waiting for that answer. Well, not exactly that answer. It get's a little too, well... Did you ever see those fifty-second century romance novels Jack would read? Awful stuff. Hurts my head just thinking about it."

"How do you plan on proceeding? We can't stay in the same place to long."

"Especially here... If my Mum finds two of you she will go mad." Rose was turning a dark shade of her favorite color.

"Miss. Tyler, I can solemnly swear I am up to no good. But yeah, don't really want to run into Jackie right now. I'm already a dead man," The Tenth Doctor said cheerfully.

"I was referring to adding more gasoline to the fire. Causing more of a fracture or paradox."

"Oh, you're just trying to get her to yourself. I know all the thoughts that are popping into your head. I can see in there. You're so romantic and poetic. All doom and gloom with a smattering of rose petals. It can't get much worse."

"Shall I repeat the thoughts that are popping up in your head?" his younger self challenged. "You are definitely up to no good."

"Do you realize you're arguing with yourself?" Rose asked with a laugh. "Seriously."

"I tend to argue with myself when our timelines converge. I've even given myself the silent treatment." The Eighth Doctor frowned.

"Oh, is he not talking to you, really? I was such a good brooder then. Remember Rose?"

"Time Lords do not brood. Do you want to tell her the plan or should I?"

"Don't worry, I got it." The Tenth Doctor turned his attention to Rose. "You know that this is risky. We are changing a point in time that is warping reality. Stars are disappearing. Your whole life is going to be different. It's going to be a little dodgy. Very dodgy. I shouldn't exist here."

"You're going to have to be tossed around a bit." the Eighth Doctor added. "We have to get Donna to turn left. Then change the events around..." he nodded towards his Future counterpart.

"Ah yes, We have to change a couple of details about when we get reunited, again. He'll know what to do," the Tenth Doctor said rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Rose. I can't stay. I have to go again. Don't worry he'll still be here. It'll straighten itself out."

"Are we ever going to address the paperclip thing?"

"Later. I'll see you later. Gotta run, like always." The pinstriped Doctor got up and started towards the door. He stopped when he felt tension on his left hand. Rose was squeezing his hand ever so tightly. Her desperation made five half-moons on his palm.

"Doctor."

"I will see you again. Don't you trust me?" he asked. His voice softly caressed the words. The blueish light retreated from her lobby. She nodded and loosened her fingers. Then he was gone.

"Where'd he go?" Rose looked over to the Time Lord that was left.

"I'm not too big on goodbyes. He's sort of slipping through the time stream. Stuck in a sort of limbo of what happened to him and what is happening to us. He really does talk a lot. Do I talk that much?"

"Both of you got a gob," Rose teased.

"You understand that you've made a choice. It's going to get complicated. Time is a mess right now. We are about to stoke the flames and raise an inferno." He sat down in the spot next to her.

"A'are you happy with all this? With me? Do you want your future to change?"

"I believe I've made my intentions clear. As clear and comprehensive as archaic Time Lord relationship protocols will allow. They are a bit stiff. I'll give you the spark notes or something on it."


End file.
